Sparks, buffaloes delay Central Railway services

Commuters on Central Railway (CR) faced inconvenience when the engine of a local train towards Kalyan broke down. When the services were just about to recover, services were further delayed when a local train hit four buffaloes on the same line due to which 65 trains were delayed and 10 cancelled.

The engine of one of the Bharat Heavy Electrical Limited (BHEL) trains have always been one of the most problematic of all types of rakes on the CR. According to information obtained from a railway officer, the motors of one of the trains was overheated and sparks were seen flying off it. “We had to stop trains on the line since panic spread amongst commuters and we halt the services completely from 10am to 10.40 am at Ghatkopar. Unfortunately, right when we had fixed the train, services were further delayed as another train hit four buffaloes at Thane. Both the trains were headed towards Kalyan,” said an official, on the condition of anonymity.

CR public relations officer A.K. Singh said, “There were some delays in the trains due to the buffaloes being hit, but services were mostly normal.”

Commuters like Ashok Kamble (45), a banker, was traveling from Kalwa to Kalyan to meet his relatives, but the delays in trains put a damper on his plans. “I was waiting for a train to Diva for over 20 minutes,” Mr Kamble said.